Marvelous Middle Grade Monday
Author Amanda Foody has successfully ventured from the YA books to middle grade fantasy with The Accidental Apprentice (Margaret K. McElderry Books, 2021). I’m excited to see there’s already a sequel planned in the Wilderlore series for next year.
Orphan Barclay Thorne is happy to be an apprentice to the village mushroom farmer. But when he is scared off the path into the Woods he meets a Lore Keeper looking for the same mushroom he needs. The girl is trying to bond with a Beast but it goes horribly wrong and Barclay is bonded with a Lufthund. Driven away from home, Barclay’s goal is to break the bond so he can return home. To do so he must journey to the city of the Lore Keepers who think these monsters are their friends and pets. But does he really fit with his rule-laden village?
Read about Amanda and her other books here. Enjoy several interviews with her about this book here and here.
The cover illustration is by Petur Antonsson–see more of his art here.
The first book I read in 2016 was appropriately a Christmas gift. It’s not technically a YA, however, the main character is 17, so I’m putting it in that category for my readers.
No Passengers Beyond This Point (Dial Books for Young Readers, 2011) by Gennifer Choldenko is a fantasy that makes you wonder along with the characters.
In The Lost Gate (Tor, 2011) by Orson Scott Card, Danny North doesn’t fit in to his family. Even though he’s a descendent of the gods, he doesn’t have any “godly” talents. Being very smart isn’t enough in the North family. The other kids consider him Drekka (an outsider who is less than them). Danny’s always trying to slip away from his tormentors and one day discovers himself outside the compound. But life outside isn’t going to be easy either.